Duncan criticizes O’Malley’s support of slots

Sounding like a candidate for governor of Maryland, Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan on Wednesday went on the offensive, criticizing Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley for expressing even conditional support for legalizing slot machines in Maryland.

Mr. Duncan, who vehemently opposes the expansion of gambling, accused Mr. O’Malley of going along with a policy he has acknowledged as “morally bankrupt.”

“I don’t understand how someone could stand up and say, ‘This is morally bankrupt, but we need to do it,’” Mr. Duncan said at a press conference in a Baltimore church with pastors from the city and Prince George’s County.

Mr. O’Malley and Mr. Duncan, both Democrats, are considering a run for governor in 2006 against Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., a Republican.

The mayor has voiced wary support for slots, saying the machines are “not my silver-bullet solution to what ails our state.”

Mr. O’Malley has expressed a willingness to compromise as a way of keeping the Preakness Stakes race in Baltimore. The city gets a huge financial lift every year from the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown.

Major players in Maryland’s horse-racing industry support bringing slot machines to the state’s racetracks to boost sagging interest at aging tracks.

Pimlico, which is home to the Preakness, was bought in 2002 by a Canadian company, which put off plans for renovations at the deteriorating track after slots legislation fell through once before. That delay has fueled some speculation that the company could move the Preakness to another track.

“My position has been, I don’t want to lose the Preakness,” Mr. O’Malley said. “I don’t want to lose the jobs from racing. I’ve thought that a reasonable compromise would be a very limited number of slots, limited to the track.”

Mr. O’Malley said his position hasn’t changed since the idea of legalizing slot machines first was proposed, and he was reluctant to discuss the issue in depth at a press conference Wednesday at City Hall. The mayor said the issue has consumed too much legislative energy at a time when the state needs to focus on other problems.

Slot machines have been a top issue in the General Assembly for the past three years.

“Frankly, I find it to be a big distraction from other things that are broken and need getting fixed,” he said.

Mr. Duncan said approving slots legislation will open the door to more gambling expansion in the future.

“We’re not paying attention to real long-term economic growth for our state because everybody is fixated on the short-term fix of gambling,” he said.

Although Mr. Ehrlich has pushed to legalize slots, Mr. Duncan accused Mr. O’Malley of being irresponsible and inconsistent in his statements on the matter.

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